Today’s one of the biggest days for iPhones and the Telco industry this year. For the first time, we are getting eSIM-only iPhones (Moto Razr was the first eSIM-only phone). However, while Apple’s thinking years ahead by going eSIM only, the hassle of moving your line to a new eSIM on a new phone and/or carrier still exists.
Apple’s process of moving eSIMs between devices is Hardware defined. This process relies heavily on OEMs, Wireless carriers, and their cooperation. And it also limits line transfer to the same type of phone — for example, Apples to Apples 🙂 This is why most eSIM-equipped carriers other than US Mobile will struggle to transfer service from their customers’ physical SIM to an iPhone 14 or other eSIM phones.
To allow eSIM to live up to its promise of unshackling consumers – the movement of eSIMs from one device to another must be software-defined. A solution defined and executed on a software level can allow the transfer to be agnostic of device, carrier, and SIM type and scales to much broader use cases (Apple to Android, eSIMs to eSIM, pSIM to eSIM etc) This also greatly reduces the complexity for consumers switching between devices, SIM, and/or networks. That’s why US Mobile’s solution for transferring eSIMs is software-defined.
Our process for moving lines from a physical SIM to an eSIM, or an eSIM to eSIM between devices (or on the same device) is simple and straightforward. The steps to move your line to an eSIM from your current iPhone or Android to another iPhone and Android are the same:
- Sign in to the US Mobile app
- Tap on the number that you’d like to transfer to eSIM.
- Tap on Transfer Line to eSIM.
- Tap on Start Transfer.
- Enter your new device’s IMEI to confirm compatibility.
- Tap on Continue with Transfer.
- In the next step enter your phone number and your device’s eSIM IMEI.
Here’s what that looks like on different types of phones
eSIM promises a connectivity experience that is seamless, secure, and flexible. And we’re getting there. At US Mobile with eSIM we’ve been taking every step as early as possible to help build this future of connectivity. We’re a market leader in introducing eSIMs to the broader public. Bringing eSIMs directly to our customers as soon as possible, listening to their feedback, and continuing to iterate on it is what allows us to build the future of connectivity.
I do not see the “Transfer to ESIM” button. Is there an update that I haven’t received?
It’s possible that’s the reason why. Make sure your app is up to date, then go to the Account tab > Security > Set up 2FA. Once 2FA is enabled, refresh the app and you should be good to go!